Tag: Industry - Page 17
News Panic Button Ex-Director Adam Creighton Reveals New Dev Studio, Enduring Games
Making games for current and upcoming consoles
The ex-director and co-owner of Switch port wonder studio Panic Button has revealed his latest project, a brand new development studio called Enduring Games. Adam Creighton, who had been involved with Panic Button since 2011, revealed that he was moving on from the company earlier this year. Where he...
News Nintendo Reportedly Exploring Production Alternatives Outside China
Joins other electronics manufacturers looking at alternatives
Video games consoles can be expensive at the best of times and proposed tariffs on Chinese goods by the current US administration have the potential to drastically increase the cost of hardware of consumers. Recently, Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft penned a joint open letter highlighting...
News Nintendo Has No Plans To Censor Video Games Like Sony
The official systems are already in place
Although Sony is clamping down on saucy content in PlayStation games, Nintendo appears to be quite happy to leave any censorship decisions to rating systems. The Japanese company recently reaffirmed this during its 79th Shareholders meeting, when president Shuntaro Furukawa was reminded about "other...
News Sony Doesn't See Nintendo As A Major Rival, More Worried About Microsoft Next Generation
And the potential threat of Google
The Wallstreet Journal has published a detailed report about Sony's next-generation PlayStation. According to the source, the company's aim is to target hardcore gamers and double down on big exclusives and publishers. In regards to market competition, a Sony representative explained how Microsoft was seen as its...
The results are in
Japanese video game company Atlus – responsible for the recent 3DS title, Persona Q2: New Cinema Labyrinth – has published its financial statement for the previous fiscal year, which began on 1st April 2018 and ended on 31st March 2019. According to a translation of the report over on Persona Central, the company experienced...
News Nintendo, Sony And Microsoft Band Together To Fight Tariffs On Video Game Consoles
United as one
If you keep up with global politics or happen to live in North America, you might have heard about recently proposed tariffs on Chinese goods by the Trump administration. In a rare display – Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft have joined forces (in a seven-page letter) to warn the American government about the impacts this could...
"We want to keep that quality bar high"
Not long after we found out the release of Animal Crossing: New Horizons had been delayed until next year, Nintendo of America president Doug Bowser said the company would not "bring a game to the market before it w
News We Believe In E3, Says Nintendo
"We’re bullish on the show. We’re here. We believe in it."
Sony was a conspicuous absence at this year's E3 event in Los Angeles, and with a trend of other companies reducing their presence at the show, the notion that the expo is losing relevance certainly isn't new. The dates for next year's event have already been announced, but it's hard to...
News Nintendo Is Seeing A Consistent Year-On-Year Increase In Media Coverage During E3
On the up for three years on the bounce
E3 is an exciting time for everyone involved, but also a very busy one for anyone working in gaming media. We're not afraid to admit that the days surrounding the event can often turn into one huge ball of stress, as announcements, reveals, leaks, and Keanu Reeves come flying at you from every angle just...
News Square Enix Also Exploring The Idea Of Its Own Subscription Or Streaming Service
An inevitable future?
If we were asked to list the most prolific video game developers and publishers we could think of, Square Enix would be right up there somewhere near the top. Its catalogue of games is enormous, and over the last couple of years we've seen plenty of games - new and old - make their way to Switch. With franchises like Final...
News Nintendo Comments On Animal Crossing Delay, Says Employee Work-Life Balance Comes First
Amen to that
If you keep up with your wider gaming industry news, you'll know that crunch and less-than-ideal workplace environments have been prominently discussed as of late. More and more workers within the industry have felt brave enough to come forward about such issues, and while we hope this will create huge steps forward for gaming work...
News Nintendo's Market Value Drops By $1 Billion After Animal Crossing Switch Delay
Tom Nook won't be best pleased
During its E3 Direct presentation, Nintendo revealed that the hotly anticipated Animal Crossing: New Horizons has been delayed until 2020. Some fans were left upset, and others excused the delay if it means we'll get the best possible final product, but it would appear that investors were not happy with the news at...
News XSEED Games Cops Backlash Online For Not Crediting Former Employee
Oh dear...
XSEED Games is currently under fire for not crediting former members of staff. This is all tied to its policy to only acknowledge its current members of staff. According to Eurogamer, the US company which specialises in the translation of Japanese games has been attacked on social media, after former localisation producer Brittany Avery...
News The Pokémon Company Rakes In $124 Million Net Profit, A 50% Year-On-Year Increase
An impressive financial year
Newly released details have revealed that The Pokémon Company generated $124 million in net profit during the last financial year. The news comes from the Japanese government's Official Gazette (thanks, KantanGames), with that figure including profits earned through Pokémon GO and Switch games Pokémon: Let's Go,...
News Disgaea Developer Nippon Ichi Software Facing Serious Financial Troubles
This is bad news, dood!
Nippon Ichi Software, the Japanese developer and publisher best known in recent years for its tactical role-playing series Disgaea, is reportedly facing serious financial troubles. This information comes from multiple Japanese media outlets, as translated by the Twitter user HDKirin. For some time now, the long-running...
News Could A 'Switch Mini' Be Key To Nvidia's Financial Revival?
"We've returned to growth in gaming"
As we all know, Nvidia makes the clever little chips that go inside the Nintendo Switch, and its alliance with the Kyoto veteran has proven to be a profitable one thus far. However, Nvidia's business goes beyond the Tegra line of silicon and includes cryptocurrency mining, AI, automobile tech, data centres and...
News Netflix Will Host A Panel At E3 2019 About Developing Original Series Into Video Games
Stranger things have happened...
In recent years, Netflix has gravitated more and more towards the video game industry. It has got to the point where the streaming service is available on just about every device there is and the company is now acquiring creative rights to any video game series it can get its hands on. More recently, a Stranger...
News Panic Button Studio Head Adam Creighton Steps Down, Moving On To Something New
Retro Studios, perhaps?
Studio head of Panic Button, Adam Creighton, has revealed that he has stepped down from his role at the company and is "moving on to something new". Panic Button has become something of a fan-favourite name amongst Nintendo Switch owners as of late, largely thanks to its porting efforts with games like DOOM, Wolfenstein,...
News One Mortal Kombat 11 Developer Had To See A Therapist After Violent Dreams
"I kind of just stopped wanting to go to sleep"
Mortal Kombat 11 hasn't had the smoothest launch. The new fighting game was criticised for being a grind-fest and more recently, there have been serious allegations of toxic work culture at NetherRealm Studios during the development cycle. If that wasn't already enough, one of the individuals involved...
News Nintendo President Comments On The Risks Of A Potential Hostile Takeover
"We do have systems in place"
In a Q+A session during Nintendo's financial results briefing for the year ending March 2019, shared today on Nintendo's website, company president Shuntaro Furukawa addressed a question which explored the possibility of a hostile takeover. Just like the events of Ubisoft's recent battle against Vivendi, where the...
News Nintendo 'Must Keep Up' With Cloud Tech, But Sees Further Potential In Dedicated Hardware
"Delivering unique entertainment... will continue to be our top priority"
As rumours and whispers of new consoles from all the big companies abound (as they always do at this point in a console generation), and with Google preparing its entrance into the gaming space with its cloud-based Stadia tech, questions are starting to be asked of Nintendo's...
News Mortal Kombat 11 Dev NetherRealm Studios Responds To Toxic Workplace Accusations
"We are actively looking into all allegations"
Last week, allegations of an abusive work culture at Mortal Kombat 11 developer NeatherRealm Studios began to surface online as employees shared their experiences on social media and with the press. The studio has now released a statement in response. Speaking to
News Mortal Kombat Studio NetherRealm Accused Of Taking Advantage Of Contracted Workers
"I have had people break down because they could not keep up"
Mortal Kombat 11 has been available on Switch for around a week or two now, and is a mostly pleasing product in its own right, but the release has been dampened somewhat by allegations of an abusive work culture at developer, NetherRealm. A report from USGamer highlights the voices of...
News Nintendo, Sony And Microsoft All Under Investigation Over Online Gaming Services
"We are fully prepared to take action"
Gaming giants Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft are all currently under investigation in the UK over fears that their online subscription services are unfair. The Competition and Markets Authority (a non-ministerial department of the UK government which has the power to enforce competition and consumer law) says...
News Nintendo Is The Ninth Most Reputable Major Company In The US, According To Study
Netflix takes top prize
A US study investigating the reputation of major companies has ranked Nintendo in ninth place, putting the Japanese gaming giant just ahead of The LEGO Group. The study, carried out by Reputation Institute, reportedly assessed the reputation of more than 2,200 companies in the US, undertaking over 167,000 individual ratings...
News Senran Kagura Producer Leaves Marvelous After Frustrations Over Sexual Content Restrictions
Now working with Cygames
Kenichiro Takaki, producer of the Senran Kagura series, has reportedly left his position at Japanese developer Marvelous. Takaki, known as the “huge boobs producer” by fans thanks to his work on the mature-themed Senran Kagura games, had been working with Marvelous for 13 years. The news of his departure comes via...
News EA Laying Off Around 350 Employees Across Multiple Divisions
"This is a difficult day"
Video game publishing giant Electronic Arts is laying off around 350 employees across its marketing, publishing and operations divisions. In an email to employees, EA CEO Andrew Wilson said the company had "a vision to be the world's greatest games company" and to do this, it would streamline its organisation to meet the...
News Rumours Of New Switch Models Cause Nintendo's Share Price To Significantly Rise
Investors seemingly on board
Yesterday, we shared a report from the Wall Street Journal which states that Nintendo is planning to release two new Switch models later this year. These claims haven't been confirmed or commented on by Nintendo itself, but the company has seen a significant share price rise as a result. The report suggests that both a...
News Nintendo And Sony Shares Drop Following Google's Stadia Reveal
Down almost 4%
Both Nintendo and Sony have seen their shares take a bit of a tumble following the Google Stadia reveal on Tuesday. Google's upcoming Stadia platform is set to allow users to stream games across pretty much any screen - mobiles, TVs, tablets, and laptops - and looks like it could make a significant and very different dent in the...
News Google Reveals Stadia, Its Vision Of A Cloud Gaming Future
The future is not a box, apparently
Search giant Google has just lifted the lid on its cloud gaming service, known as Stadia. The service will stream games across pretty much any device with a screen, including phones, tablets, laptops, TVs and more besides. You’ll be able to access your games via all of these portals, and even pick up where you...
News Media Create Will No Longer Share Japanese Sales Data Publicly
Behind closed doors
Recently, the head of Media Create Atsushi Hosokawa told Bloomberg the practice of releasing Japanese hardware and software sales data publicly may not continue. Now, after a review, the team has decided to no longer share weekly sales figures with the general public. Starting next month, companies requiring sales data will need...
News Media Create Boss Says Switch Will Have A Seven Year Life Cycle, Sales To Grow In Third Year
Will we still be playing in 2024?
The Switch has had an impressive first couple of years on the market, selling well and earning records left, right and centre, but this financial year was tainted ever so slightly by lofty targets. Originally, Nintendo expected to ship 20 million units, having to cut this down to a more modest 17 million due to...
News Nintendo Tells Mobile Partners To Limit Microtransactions So That Players Don't Spend Too Much
Players and brand reputation come first
Nintendo's delve into the world of mobile gaming came as quite a shock, especially considering the Japanese giant had barely even scratched the surface of the new and rapidly emerging practice of paid DLC at the time. The company has often been thought to be slightly behind the times when compared to its main...
News Activision Admits Recent Layoffs "Could Negatively Impact Business"
"No assurance that our business will be more efficient or effective"
Given the sheer volume of cash involved in games development these days you'd assume that a company the size of Activision Blizzard would be capable of conducting its business in a sensible manner, but that doesn't appear to be the case, given recent events. We reported a short...
News Nintendo Reveals Average Salary, Age And More Of Its Employees In Japan
Let's be nosy, shall we?
For most fans of the company, working at Nintendo probably sounds like a dream come true. Being surrounded by your heroes on a daily basis, working on incredibly exciting projects and - of course - the potential for free games all sounds pretty lovely, but what is it actually like working in the house of Mario? Well, while...
Feature Meet Doug Bowser, The Man Behind The Meme
Just who does this 'Bowser' fellow think he is?
With news that Reggie Fils-Aimé is to step down from his role as President of Nintendo of America, his successor – Mr Doug Bowser – was probably prepared for the deluge of familiar headlines to flood the web. He’s been on the radar of Nintendo fans for a while now – with that surname it would...
Rumour French Gaming Website Suggests Cuphead Could Come To Switch
Nintendo and Microsoft collaboration rumours persist
Further to last night's rumours suggesting that Microsoft is planning to bring an Xbox app, Project X Cloud and its Game Pass service to Switch, more details have come to light regarding the possible cross-pollination. French gaming website Jeuxvideo has extra details regarding the potential...
News Julian Eggebrecht, Ex-Head Of Factor 5, Joined Epic Games Last Month
What if...?
Warning: the following news may have you pining for 'the good old days' and thinking back wistfully to when EA wasn't fouling up good Star Wars games with lootbox nonsense. Erstwhile Nintendo Life contributor Liam Robertson has noted on Twitter a recent movement of a prominent industry figure under the considerable umbrella of Epic...
News Bayonetta 2 Director Yusuke Hashimoto Leaves PlatinumGames
Moving on
Following the recent Nintendo Direct, where it was revealed PlatinumGames was "hard at work" on the upcoming Switch release Bayonetta 3, it's now been revealed Japanese director and producer Yusuke Hashimoto - who previously worked on Bayonetta, Bayonetta 2 and
Something isn't right
Activision Blizzard has revealed that it will be laying off hundreds of members of staff despite seeing the best financial results in the company's history last year. The news comes from the company's full-year earnings call, in which Activision Blizzard CEO, Bobby Kotick, shared the news that the company had “once again...
News Sony Gaming Boss Says The Industry Is "Better" Because Of Nintendo's Efforts
"Never underestimate Nintendo"
Yesterday, we heard how Sony Interactive Entertainment Chairman Shawn Layden sat down with Game Informer and sent some praise in the direction of the Nintendo Switch, Xbox One X and even tablets and smartphones - stating how there are great gaming experiences across all of these platforms and explaining how each of...
News Sony Gaming Boss On The "Great Experiences" Available On Switch And A More Open Future
"We’re all part of the same gaming community"
We're used to hearing positive remarks about Switch from Xbox's executive vice-president of Gaming, Phil Spencer, but Sony are usually a little more tight-lipped when it comes to praising the competition. In a recent chat with gameinformer, SIE Chairman Shawn Layden was uncharacteristically generous...
News Nintendo Sees Stock Fall By 9% After Cutting Its 20 Million Switch Sales Target
Ouch
Yesterday, Nintendo shared financial data, sales figures and more from its Nine Months Earnings Release, revealing that it has slashed its bold 20 million Switch hardware sales target for the financial year. As is becoming a somewhat usual occurrence, the company's stock has fallen by a dramatic amount as a result, with investors seemingly...
Now aiming for 17 million
Nintendo has shared its Nine Months Earnings Release for the financial year ending March 2019, giving us plenty of insight into how the company is performing in terms of sales across all consoles and other forms of income. Perhaps the most interesting news to come of the financial report is the fact that Nintendo has...
News Game Developer Survey Shows That Nearly Half Of Devs Are Most Interested In The Switch
Switch game sales still performing well
A survey asking a large number of video game developers for their views on the current climate of game development has revealed that almost half are most interested in releasing a game on the Nintendo Switch. This information comes from the 2019 GDC State of the Game Industry survey, which polled nearly 4,000...
News Nintendo's Bold Switch Sales Target Could Be Achievable After All
'Unexpectedly good' holiday sales provide boost
Remember when Nintendo projected it would sell 20 million Switch consoles in the current fiscal year? The prediction was met with pretty widespread derision, with many industry analysts claiming it was far too high to be achievable – especially when you take into account the Switch's second year on...
News Gaming Analysts Predict 'Switch Pro' And 'Switch Lite' Revisions For 2019
And more third-party support
In March, the Nintendo Switch will have been on the market for two whole years. With advancements in technology being as fast as they are, and with demand for bigger and better gaming experiences growing at a similar rate, seeing console revisions midway through a system's life has become almost guaranteed in recent...
News 80% Of UK Gaming Revenue Came From Digital Sales In 2018, Industry Made Almost £4bn In Total
Top 20 best-selling games of the year shared
New statistics from The Entertainment Retailers Association have revealed a variety of staggering facts concerning UK gaming in 2018, perhaps most notably confirming that 80.1% of revenue was made through digital sales. The study compares information across video games, film, and music in the UK, with...
News Damon Baker Departs Nintendo After 12 Years
All the best
Damon Baker might not be quite as famous as certain other employees who work at Nintendo of America, but he's definitely not far off. Now, in an unexpected announcement, Baker has revealed via Twitter he will leave Nintendo after more than 12 years. In 2019, he will pursue a new opportunity and promises fans this won't be the last time...
News Nintendo Switch Becomes The Fastest-Selling Console Of This Generation In The US
Nintendo the best-selling publisher, too
The Nintendo Switch has become the fastest-selling video game system of this hardware generation during its 21 months on sale in the US, it has been confirmed. The news comes from American market research company The NPD Group, which tracks video game sales in the United States. From its launch in March 2017...